Operation Epic Fury & Operation Roaring Lion Joint Operations Moral Patch

Operation Epic Fury Moral Patch

Full Briefing

Official Names / Codenames

• U.S. designation: Operation Epic Fury (named by the Pentagon / U.S. Central Command)
• Israeli designation: Operation Roaring Lion (also reported as Operation Raging Lion or Operation Lion's Roar — some variation in translations from Hebrew)
• These are two separate but coordinated and synchronized operations under a joint U.S.-Israeli effort

Command Authority

• U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), headquartered in Tampa, Florida, commenced Operation Epic Fury on February 28, at the direction of the President of the United States.
• The operation was ordered by President Donald Trump
• The Israeli side is coordinated by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), with IDF Chief of the General Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir in command

U.S. Military Elements & Units Involved

Naval Forces:

• USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) — aircraft carrier operating in the North Arabian Sea, part of the Lincoln Carrier Strike Group
• USS Gerald R. Ford — aircraft carrier operating in the Eastern Mediterranean as part of the Ford Carrier Strike Group
• 14 guided-missile destroyers spread across the Mediterranean and the Middle East, armed with SM-3 ballistic missile interceptors, SM-2s, and SM-6s

Aircraft:

• Marine F-35C Lightning II fighters launched from USS Abraham Lincoln
• Navy F/A-18E/F Super Hornet fighters launched from USS Abraham Lincoln

Ground-Based Assets:

• U.S. Army THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) systems in the region
• U.S. Army Patriot PAC-3 missile batteries

Special Task Force:

• CENTCOM Task Force Scorpion Strike — employed low-cost one-way attack drones for the first time in combat

Targets & Objectives

Per CENTCOM, targets included Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) command and control facilities, Iranian air defense capabilities, missile and drone launch sites, and military airfields. Strikes were launched from air, land, and sea. The stated goal was to "dismantle the Iranian regime's security apparatus, prioritizing locations that posed an imminent threat."

Strike locations included Tehran, Isfahan, Qom, Karaj, Shiraz, and Kermanshah.

Iranian Retaliation

Iran launched dozens of ballistic missiles throughout the Persian Gulf and beyond, targeting Israel and U.S. military bases in Jordan, Syria, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. The Houthis also announced they would resume attacks in the Red Sea.